Utah gymnastics team hopes team closeness pays off in crunch time

Competing for three meets on the road wasn’t ideal for Utah’s gymnastics team, but the Utes made the best of the situation by considering all that extra time together a chance to work on an element they hope will help them as the postseason looms — team bonding.

The Utes, who hold offseason camps and other events to emphasize team togetherness, believe their latest road swing gave them a chance to form a better team in the “team sense.”

The Utes said that is crucial as they finish the regular season Friday against Georgia then head into the postseason.

“It helps because the mentality you have outside the gym affects the mentality you have inside the gym,” senior Tiffani Lewis said. “You want to have everyone’s minds in the right place, and you want people to know you care about them because there is an energy that surrounds a team. We want good chemistry. It’s one of the greatest things we have.”

The Utes say they came into the season with a strong kinship that helped them help the team two freshmen adjust quickly to collegiate competition, something that is important to the team’s success.

“The team retreat before the season is one of the most important parts of our preparation,” senior Maddy Stover said. “You have your phones and computers taken away, and you are just spending time with each other. It’s important for the freshmen to be there and make them feel a part of something. You get better gymnastics from them.”

The Utes try to continue all that team bonding in their road trips. The room assignments change and team dinners and bus rides are social events.

Utah coach Megan Marsden said team dinners the night before the meet are team only, with no friends, family or cell phones.

“It’s important to have that old-fashioned talk with people,” she said. “The good thing about being on the road is you are living together 24/7 and some fun and funny things happen that creates camaraderie. Those things help in the postseason because coaches and athletes can reminisce when the pressure is the tightest. It helps to keep things light.”

Stover said some teams come together faster than others. This team naturally bonded, she said.

The gymnasts have stayed that way too, which is important considering the road trips didn’t go exactly as planned. The Utes went 1-2 and easily could have fractured as a team as a result of the disappointment and frustrations.

The team instead is more cohesive, with everyone determined to get the Utes back on the winning track.

“Sometimes when you get 12 girls together, you don’t naturally get along,” Stover said. “But we thrive on being on the road because there is a sense of sisterhood. It’s reflective of how we compete, too. Everyone, including the coaching staff, is supportive of each other.”

All that togetherness is something new for many of the gymnasts who come to Utah’s program from the elite level. There the goals are individual even when they are on the same team.

“We got along well, but this is different,” MyKayla Skinner said. “We get to build better relationships, and when you have that bonding with the team, you just know that each of you is going to go up there and hit. Everyone is going to go out and do their best for each other.”

But will the intangible element of being a close team be enough to help the Utes perform their best as the championship run begins?

It certainly won’t hurt, Skinner said.

“We build these relationships,” Skinner said. “You know each other better, and you are more relaxed and have more fun. You are going to compete better.”